Despite the ongoing Writers Guild of America (WGA) strike, the 76th annual Tony Awards took place with minimal issues on June 11 at the United Palace in Washington Heights. Tony Award organizers, prior to the ceremony, agreed to a deal with the WGA to host the renowned event without a script. Host Ariana DeBose showed TV audiences a blank script at the start of the broadcast and opened the show with a hectic dance sequence. Cast members from New York, New York; Camelot; & Juliet; Some Like It Hot; Into the Woods; Parade; Sweeney Todd; Kimberly Akimbo; Shucked; and Funny Girl also filled time between award presentations with memorable performances.
Overall, 27 awards were handed out at the ceremony and John Kander, an iconic composer known for Chicago and Cabaret, was honored with the Lifetime Achievement Tony Award. Below is a look at some of the winners of the most prominent categories.
1. Leopoldstadt (Best Play)
Leopoldstadt, a two-time Olivier award-winning production that debuted in London’s West End, won the Tony for Best Play ahead of nominees Ain’t No Mo’, Between Riverside and Crazy, Fat Ham, and Cost of Living. An intergenerational family drama by playwright Tom Stoppard, Leopoldstadt explores issues like Jewish identity and anti-Semitism. Sonia Friedman, who produced the play, called it Stoppard’s “most personal masterwork,” which is impressive considering he has written more than 20 plays since 1963.
Leopoldstadt tied with Some Like It Hot for the second-most Tony Award victories with four. Patrick Marber won the Tony for Best Direction of a Play and Bradon Uranowitz won for Best Featured Actor in a Play. Brigitte Reiffensutel won for Best Costume Design of a Play.
2. Kimberly Akimbo (Best Musical)
Kimberly Akimbo was the biggest winner of the night with five Tonys, most notably winning Best Musical ahead of nominees & Juliet; New York, New York; Shucked; and Some Like It Hot. The intimate and heartfelt musical, with a book by David Lindsay-Abaire and music by Jeanine Tesori, tells the story of a teenager navigating her rare genetic disorder, which causes her to age five times faster than her peers, alongside high school romance and a dysfunctional family.
Veteran Broadway actress Victoria Clark, who played the titular role, won Best Leading Actress for her convincing and sensitive performance of a 16-year-old stuck in the body of a 70-year-old woman. Clark, 63, previously won Best Leading Actress in a Musical in 2005 for The Light in the Piazza. Kimberly Akimbo also won Best Book of a Musical and Best Original Score, while Bonnie Milligan won for Best Featured Actress in a Musical. The musical received nine nominations.
3. Jodie Comer (Best Leading Actress in a Play)
A three-time Emmy nominated actress, Jodie Comer won Best Leading Actress in a Play for Prima Facie, a one-woman play that highlights the faults in the legal system as it pertains to handling sexual assault cases. Comer plays Tessa, a high-profile lawyer who defends men accused of sexual assault before becoming a victim herself. She won the award in favor of nominees Jessica Chastain (A Doll’s House), Jessica Hecht (Summer, 1976), and Audra McDonald (Ohio State Murders). Miriam Buether and Natasha Chivers were nominated for Best Scenic Design of a Play and Best Lighting Design of a Play, respectively.
Comer, a 30-year-old British actress, is best known for playing an assassin in the TV series Killing Eve and has also appeared in movies, including The Last Duel and Free Guy. Her performance in Prima Facie marked her Broadway debut.
4. Sean Hayes (Best Leading Actor in a Play)
Sean Hayes, known for his role in TV’s Will and Grace as well as Broadway productions like Promises, Promises and An Act of God, won Best Leading Actor in a Play for Good Night, Oscar. He played the titular role of Oscar Levant, a once-famed pianist who has since fallen into obscurity. Wendell Pierce (Death of a Salesman), Stephen McKinley Henderson (Between Riverside and Crazy), Corey Hawkins (Topdog/Underdog), and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II (Topdog/Underdog) were also nominated for the award.
5. J. Harrison Ghee (Best Leading Actor in a Musical)
J. Harrison Ghee was one of the first two non-binary people to win Tonys for acting as they took home Best Leading Actor in a Musical for their performance in Some Like It Hot. “Thank you for the humanity. Thank you for my incredible company who raised me up every single day,” Ghee noted in their acceptance speech, while paying special tribute to their mother. Christian Borle (Some Like it Hot), Josh Groban (Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street), Brian D’Arcy James (Into the Woods), Ben Platt (Parade), and Colton Ryan (New York, New York) were also nominated for the award.
Alex Newell, who is also non-binary, won Best Featured Actor in a Musical for their performance in Shucked. Writer and composer Toby Marlow was the Tony Awards’ first non-binary winner in 2022.
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